Auburn steps on gas early, cruises past Ga. Southern

Auburn (1-0) opened up strong against Georgia Southern (0-1) and never looked back, cruising to a 41-7 victory at Jordan-Hare Saturday night.

Auburn Quarterback Jarrett Stidham in his first action as an Auburn Tiger put up a strong performance accounting for three of Auburn's five touchdowns. The first of which he picked up on the ground, scampering in from 14 yards out to give Auburn a 17-7 lead in the second quarter.

Stidham picked up 185 yards in the air on 14 of 24 passing to go along with the two touchdown passes he had. The first touchdown pass connecting with Ryan Davis for 19 yards and the second, another 19-yard strike to Will Hastings giving Auburn its final score of the night.

Running back Kerryon Johnson left the game in the first half with an apparent injury, but not after rushing for 136 yards, just 10 yards off his career mark.

Auburn posted two 100-yard rushers on the evening as Kam Martin also eclipsed 100 yards for the Tigers accounting for 136 yards himself, including a long 36-yard touchdown run in the second quarter.

The Tiger defense swallowed the Georgia Southern offense, keeping them to just 78 yards total and eight first downs for the entire game. The Tiger offense itself ran wild, accounting for 535 yards.

Daniel Carlson knocked through two field goals and five extra points, becoming Auburn's all-time leader in career points with 364.

Next Saturday, Auburn will travel on the road to take on the defending national champions in Clemson. That game is slated for a 6 p.m. kickoff.

Fans of both teams can't forget the recent history the two teams share. Two straight meetings in the National Championship, with both games being decided by a combined nine points. Alabama won 45-40 in 2016, Clemson bested the Tide 35-31 in the final seconds in 2017.

Fans of both teams can't forget the recent history the two teams share. Two straight meetings in the National Championship, with both games being decided by a combined nine points. Alabama won 45-40 in 2016, Clemson bested the Tide 35-31 in the final seconds in 2017.

(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert). Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney and Alabama head coach Nick Saban, left, pose with the Sugar Bowl trophy for their upcoming semi-final playoff game, for the NCAA football national championship, in New Orleans, Sunday, Dec. 31...

Hollywood couldn't write a better script than what we've seen so far in Clemson and Alabama's post-season rivalry, and fans on both sides are hoping for a happy ending to the must-see trilogy.